From selling box lunches to becoming a famous Chinese chef

Chen Zhiheng was stunned for a moment before he came to his senses.

“Zhengming, don’t act impulsively in this matter. You are now the best Shandong cuisine chef. If you don’t step in, wouldn’t this Shandong cuisine documentary seem less authoritative?”

Feng Zhengming: "Brother Chen, I wasn't acting impulsively, and I wasn't actually angry."

"At the time, the deputy director at the TV station was right. I'm a chef, and I don't know anything about documentary filming. I could only offer suggestions; ultimately, we had to follow the station's instructions."

After listening to Feng Zhengming's words, Chen Zhiheng felt that Feng Zhengming was still angry.

"Zhengming, as you know, some people are unwilling to let go of the little bit of power they hold onto. Please don't be angry; you are the pride of our Shandong cuisine."

Therefore, the provincial government and the Shandong Cuisine Chefs Association support you, and I believe that the majority of people in the province will support you as well.

We still need to work together to make a good documentary about Shandong cuisine, so that more people can better understand our Shandong cuisine.

After hearing Chen Zhiheng's words, Feng Zhengming felt somewhat embarrassed.

In his heart, Shandong cuisine is indeed very important.

He also hopes to make a good documentary about Shandong cuisine.

Seeing that Chen Zhiheng's attitude was very sincere.

From Chen Zhiheng, Feng Zhengming also realized that the province really valued the documentary on Shandong cuisine.

After some thought, Feng Zhengming could only express his opinion.

"Brother Chen, don't worry, I won't give up or not participate. I just feel that since we're going to film Shandong cuisine, the theme should be Shandong cuisine, the development of Shandong cuisine, and some of the local products from Shandong that have influenced the development of Shandong cuisine."

Next up are the chefs from various parts of Shandong Province who have a certain influence; these will definitely need to be filmed and introduced.

If we were to film every part of the province in detail, it would definitely cost a lot of manpower and resources.

Furthermore, the final product might become too long, which might not be suitable for promoting Shandong cuisine.

Upon hearing Feng Zhengming's words, Chen Zhiheng immediately smiled.

He understood that Feng Zhengming's detailed explanation showed that Feng Zhengming had indeed studied documentary filmmaking seriously and had his own set of preparations.

In Chen Zhiheng's view, this was definitely more appropriate than those people at the TV station.

After all, Feng Zhengming is, in any case, a top-tier chef of Shandong cuisine today.

Therefore, he definitely understands better than the people at the TV station how to promote Shandong cuisine.

As Feng Zhengming himself said, if everything is filmed in too much detail, the documentary will become too long and ultimately fail to promote Shandong cuisine.

Chen Zhiheng: "Zhengming, I knew you had your own ideas. Don't worry, the province will definitely support your ideas."

Before I came, the provincial leaders specifically told me that if the provincial television station didn't accept my proposal, we could hire other production teams to film it.

Hearing this, Feng Zhengming was greatly surprised.

He never expected the province to support him in this way.

They would rather find another production team to make the documentary than let Feng Zhengming lead the entire documentary.

Since the province had placed such great trust in him, Feng Zhengming knew that it would be inappropriate to refuse any further.

"Brother Chen, please help me thank the province for their trust. I will use the time during the Spring Festival to prepare the documentary proposal and submit it to the province for review and discussion after the holiday."

It was obvious that Chen Zhiheng had come here specifically to get this quote from Feng Zhengming.

"Okay, okay, Zhengming, there's no rush for the plan. Everyone should enjoy the Spring Festival. The province is willing to wait for you to prepare the plan whenever you want."

Feng Zhengming had originally intended to invite Chen Zhiheng to stay for dinner.

Chen Zhiheng still refused, saying that he needed to go back and hand over his work first.

"Today is the Little New Year, and I still need to go back to my father's place for dinner tonight. My father has already made preparations and bought a lot of things from the old Feng family dry food shop to prepare."

Feng Zhengming: "I haven't tried any of the old shops' products this year, so I don't know how they taste."

Chen Zhiheng: "Hahaha, don't you trust your own shop? The food made by this old shop is definitely the authentic taste of Shandong cuisine. Business is booming. My dad only managed to buy it because of Uncle Feng's connections."

At this moment, Feng Zonggu came out from the inner room.

"Xiao Chen, go back and tell your dad that if he needs to buy those things in the future, he can just come to me. He's so old, why should he queue up? We're all family, no need to be so polite."

Chen Zhiheng smiled and said, "Okay, Uncle Feng, I'll go back and tell my dad."

Feng Zhengming saw Chen Zhiheng off at the door, escorting him all the way to the intersection.

I watched Chen Zhiheng ride away on his bicycle.

Feng Zhengming was very grateful for the help Chen Zhiheng had given him.

He was well aware that he spent most of the year away from Jinan.

The reason why the province still maintains its absolute support for me is because...

On the one hand, he has indeed done a great job promoting Shandong cuisine outside, and has even successfully earned his restaurant the title of one of the world's top ten restaurants of the year.

This forced the province to take it seriously and provide sufficient support.

On the other hand, it was also thanks to Chen Zhiheng and Tao Jingwen, who spoke up for him most of the time in the province.

With them around, the province's impression of Feng Zhengming will improve.

Of course, all of this is based on the premise that Feng Zhengming does indeed possess sufficient strength.

He can achieve what others cannot, and he can successfully conquer the judges of the International Gastronomy Association with his culinary skills.

This is a level of skill that many chefs simply cannot match.

They have the ability to demonstrate this.

No one could say that supporting someone inferior to Feng Zhengming would lead to his opposition.

After seeing Chen Zhiheng off, Feng Zhengming returned home.

He began preparing the New Year's Eve dinner at his grandfather's house.

Many things had already been prepared in advance, but Feng Zhengming still needed to prepare some stir-fried dishes.

Feng Zhengming had very few opportunities to go home that year.

He was back home for the Chinese New Year, and he still wanted to cook a few dishes for his family himself.

While Feng Zhengming was cooking in the kitchen, his daughter came up to him with a smile.

After glancing at his daughter, Feng Zhengming smiled as well.

"What's wrong? Dad's cooking, do you want to come over and watch?"

Feng Nuanyou: "Hehehe, Daddy, I'm here with you."

Feng Zhengming: "Okay, then you stay here with Dad."

Feng Nuanyou: "Dad, why is the way you cook at Great-Grandpa's house different from how you cook in the restaurant?"

Feng Zhengming: "Because my great-grandfather's family didn't have that many things, and when cooking at home, we sometimes can't use as much oil as we would in a restaurant kitchen."

Hearing her father say this, Feng Nuanyou thought for a moment: "Is it because Great-Grandpa can't eat a lot of oil?"

Feng Zhengming: "Yes, Youyou is so smart. Both of your great-grandfathers are getting old and can't eat too much oil, so we need to use less oil in our cooking."

Feng Nuanyou: "We can let Great-Grandpa and the others eat more fish and shrimp, because they have less oil."

Feng Zhengming: "Youyou is so smart, so Daddy is going to make braised cabbage and shrimp for Great-Grandpa and the others. We can use less oil, and it will still taste delicious. We'll cook the cabbage until it's very soft, so Great-Grandpa will like it a lot, right?"

Feng Nuanyou: "Youyou likes to eat too." Feng Zhengming: "Then let Youyou eat with Great-Grandpa and the others."

The father and daughter were in the kitchen, cooking and chatting at the same time.

From time to time, Feng Zhengming would also assign some non-dangerous tasks to his daughter.

This made the little girl even happier.

Feng Nuanyou felt a great sense of accomplishment from being able to help her father with chores.

With the sound of a car, the three families—my eldest uncle, second aunt, and third uncle—returned one after another.

Upon learning that Feng Zhengming was busy in the kitchen, his aunt and third aunt originally wanted to come in and help.

Feng Zhengming smiled and said, "No need, I've prepared a lot of things in advance. I'll just cook a few stir-fries and braised dishes. Auntie, please come in and sit for a while."

Seeing Feng Nuanyou in the kitchen, both the eldest and third grandmothers wanted to take the little girl out.

"Youyou, come here and let Grandma take a look."

"Youyou, go out with Grandma and Third Grandma first, let Daddy cook properly, okay?"

Feng Nuanyou shook her head: "I want to stay with my dad. He asked me to help him."

The little girl's answer left the two grandmothers somewhat at a loss.

Feng Zhengming then spoke up: "Youyou, you go out with Grandma and Grandma San first to keep Grandpa company. Dad will finish cooking here soon, and then we can eat."

As expected, Feng Nuanyou obeyed as soon as her father spoke.

"Okay, Dad, then Grandma, Grandma, and Grandma will go out first."

The little girl was very well-behaved; she walked to the door and took the hands of her two grandmothers as they walked together.

This naturally made the two grandmothers very happy.

Seeing Feng Nuanyou being led back by her eldest and youngest daughters-in-law.

Feng Zonggu asked, somewhat puzzled, "Didn't you help Zhengming?"

Feng Nuanyou immediately stepped forward to speak.

"Great-Grandpa, Dad said he'll be done soon. He told us to come back and get our things ready, and then we can eat together when he brings the dishes up."

The little girl's words made the whole family laugh.

The two daughters-in-law of the Feng family exchanged a glance and thought that Feng Nuanyou, this little girl, was really smart.

Her words made the situation where they couldn't help less awkward.

Then he successfully made everyone in his family laugh.

This also meant that Feng Zonggu would no longer blame his two daughters-in-law.

Everyone tidied up their living room and took out the large round table that they didn't usually use to set it up.

Feng Nuanyou also helped, following behind her two uncles and aunt to move stools.

Not long after the table was cleared, Feng Zhengming's side was also ready and began serving the dishes.

Most of the dishes were prepared in advance before the old Feng family rice shop closed down.

Therefore, Feng Zhengming doesn't need to do everything himself.

After the various cold dishes were served, Feng Zhengming quickly brought out the stewed and braised dishes as well.

Finally, I served all the stir-fried dishes that I was good at.

This little New Year's Eve dinner has been prepared.

Feng Zhengming also sat down, and then everyone raised their glasses together. First, the whole family toasted Grandpa Situ and Grandpa Feng.

The two old men had smiles on their faces. Although their eldest son and second son-in-law had not yet returned, the two grandfathers were still very happy to have the whole family together to celebrate the Lunar New Year.

After the first toast, everyone sat down and began to eat.

While eating, Zhang Hongwei, the son of the second aunt, couldn't help but confide in Feng Zhengming after taking a few bites.

"Brother, I'm so glad to finally eat your cooking again! You have no idea how much I've been craving your cooking at school. Your dishes are just so much better than what we eat in the school cafeteria."

Upon hearing Zhang Hongwei's words, Feng Zhengming chuckled and asked, "That shouldn't be the case. Your school cafeteria should have pretty good food."

Zhang Hongwei: "It's not bad, I heard that the chefs in our school cafeteria are specially hired chefs, but compared to you, they are far inferior."

Feng Zhengming: "Actually, as long as the chef does a good job, everyone's skills are about the same."

These words made Zhang Hongwei's eyes widen: "Wow, bro, if those chefs who are chasing you hear you say that, won't they all think you're insulting them?"

Feng Suying glared at her son: "What nonsense are you talking about? How is your brother's statement insulting?"

Zhang Hongwei: "Mom, I mean that's how people might think."

Feng Zhengming: "I'm not trying to humiliate them. It's just that everyone cooks well, so their skills are probably not that different. There might be some differences in the seasoning."

At this point, Feng Zhengming emphasized one point.

"Of course, the premise is that the chef can do it well. The problem is that the chef may find it too troublesome and too hard and be unwilling to strictly follow the requirements to do it well."

Feng Zonggu: "That's right. Nothing in the world is more afraid of the word 'serious'. As long as you do it seriously, there is nothing that you can't do well."

Feng Zhengming: "You're right, many chefs aren't incapable of cooking, they're just unwilling to do it properly."

Grandpa Situ also spoke up: "Zhengming, did Xiao Chen come to see you to talk about the Shandong cuisine documentary?"

The topic was brought up here, and the whole family looked at Feng Zhengming.

Feng Zhengming smiled and recounted what had happened.

After listening, everyone looked at the two old men again.

Feng Zonggu and Brother Situ exchanged a glance, and he said, "You two should share your opinions first."

My aunt was the first to express her opinion.

“Zhengming, I think the province is willing to support you, so you should shoulder this responsibility. You are definitely the one who should be making the documentary on Shandong cuisine. I can’t say about the past or the future, but right now you are the best Shandong cuisine chef.”

As soon as the eldest aunt finished speaking, the second aunt echoed her agreement.

“Your aunt is right. You should take the lead in this matter. What right does a deputy director of a TV station have to tell you how to make a documentary about Shandong cuisine? Zhengming, you should come up with your own plan and convince them.”

When it came to his third uncle, Feng Jiandong had a different opinion.

“Zhengming, didn’t Chen Zhiheng say that the province thinks that if the provincial TV station can’t produce it well, we can find an outside production team to produce it? I think you should set up a production team yourself and make a documentary about Shandong cuisine.”

It must be said that Feng Jiandong's views are always somewhat unexpected.

But if you think about it carefully, you'll find that Feng Jiandong's point of view is actually quite appropriate.

Grandpa Situ was the first to express his agreement.

"The third brother is right. With your current reputation, it would be easy for you to assemble a filming crew and production team for a documentary about Shandong cuisine."

If you want something simpler—just to make a documentary about the history and promotion of Shandong cuisine—then assembling your own filming and production team is definitely a better approach.

Grandpa Situ said that the family members all expressed their support for Feng Zhengming.

This actually made Feng Zhengming somewhat tempted. (End of Chapter)